New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-07-09
THE IRON RANGE oFN1NgEsoTA.
A RUSH FOR CLAIMS AND CORNER LOTS.


RUSH FOR CLAIMS AND CORNER LOTS.
TOWNS SPRINGING UP IN THE FOREST, A NEW RAIL.
ROAD md LIVELY TIMES GENERALLY,
TOWER, Mimi. July "A visitor from the East
to this place filed with at the activity
that prevails and the development of the neighborng
region. little than three years ago the forest
portion OF Northern Minnesota nearly I'M
broken wilderness, the home of the bear, moose and
caribou deer. and sparsely peopled by lumbermen
winter Its forest echoes seldom resounded excepting
to the slot of the hunter and Its paths were beaten
BY members of the scattered In iian tribes that
| inhabited the region.
The general contour of the country is rather level
excepting along range OF broken hills and rocky
knobs, which extend for nearly hundred miles east
and west AUD ly in, fifty miles above Lake
Superior 1t ia along and under this range OF hills
that the greatest discovery OF iron has been made
in years 1t is not learned what the circum-
stances under which the mineral was first found.
The country has been to some extent visited
fifteen years in search OF pine lands and prob
ably stumbled upt in that way. At time when the
price of ir offered for its production
the Min Iesvta Iron Company secured considerable
tract OF land the south shore OF Vermilion Lake
in the heart of the iron range and began to develop
its property. That five years or more ago. For
considerable time afterwsrd the work Of mining here
prosecuted under great difficulties. and upon
rather insignificant scale. Supplies hauled
through the woods IN winter on seds to stock the
companys store and station here, located near the
shore Of the lake. in collection OF leg huts Three
years ago this company assisted in building road
from Duluth, known as the Duluth and Iron Range
Road, and immediately the transport began OF the
accumulated ore to the port OF Two Harbors, Lake
Superior whence all the output OF the mines has since
been sDlpped through the lake to Cleveland and
points whore is smeted and worked into various
manufactures.
This company Is now taking ore ont of several
liz ol Ia al M
depth has yet been reached. Most of the ore Is
gotten out by cutting into the rocky slopes OF the
knobs that jut out here and there, and afterward
dumped into from shutes at the end OF trestles
built out the hillside. The workmen at the mines
number about 1000 and occupy large village
huddled around tho base of operations, nearly tvo
miles from this town OF Tower
Every feature of Tower bcspeaks its recent origin
and its saloons give what may be called
tough look The principal hotel is very much OF a
barrack, painted yellow. and with as plain an ex-
terror as You about some wooden tenement house
the outskirts of New-York. Some stores here are
certainly fitted up and stocked credtably, but the
general aspect Is as tOngh and rough" as Major
Joey Bagstocks description OF himself. Back yards
and vacant lots bristle with stumps rocks and tree
trunks rottng as they tell 10 the original forest
tame bear chained at wood pile near my window
plays with a stick of cord wood Tolls in the sun the
entire day. Government reservation on the lake
hard by contains Indian families vt the Chippewa
perhaps fetching in canoe tor SALE Few days
since an old buck of astidous taste, captivated by
the sight Of bonnet Ia a nilllner's window, decked
with feather and ribbon. walked In, bought It, and
eappng it on, went out, evidently elated with MS
purchase
A walk through the woods OF a mile brings one to
Vermillion Lake of which, however, only a small
Iortion Is Visible from the shore. Irregular in FORM
IL stretches in ell directions like the anenoe OF
great octopus. Here we see explorers and settlers
bringing their upon their shoulders to the
dock and arranging their dnife preparatory to
departure for different points. The beng
skilfully packed, the crew. consisting generally OF
two themselves the bars kneel on the
bottom dip their paddles into the clear water and
skim away. At q distance Indian Is fishing nd
yonder come q company OF surveyors with lnstru-
ments packs and guide who slows the canoe, alter
whirh all EMBARK and shoot away to be gone tor
weeks perhaps to accomplish some Government sur
vey OF a distant township and wage warfare on black
flies and mosqutoes at the same time.
After the first discoveries OF mineral here 1t was not
ascertained how far the iron range ran. but 1t
not long b-tore outoroppings denoted well defined
deposits aud lodges elsewhere, and at different DIS
tances upon til. general elevation, and subsequent
blasting and drilling produced the most fatering
results When 1t became known generally what the
prob length OF the bed wild rush began
to secure homesteads upon vacant land along the
range. Everybody within access OF the Land Omce
nj Duluth began selecting from the Government land
plats qusrtersectons at random all along what they
believed be the territory prisug the range, anu
great the volume of business at the Land Once
! last tall and winter that II was with difficulty II
could DO attended to. A man appearing with an entry
| paper at a m, found so many ahead OF him on
similar errand that he rarely got attended to before
noon. This spring the pilgrimage through this town
| began bl these h0mesteaders on their way 10 dis
| cover what luck had in store TOR them, how their
! land lay and whether Ii rested over mine Woods
men, familiar with the country, and called here ex
| porers came into great request TO pilot parties
| about Canoes rose in price from five dollars TO
fifteen aud twenty and rushing business has been
| done generally. ,
| There Is another class of men, lumhermen for in
stance and youngsters who work at anything ABOUT
country or town WI o. attracted by the bait WI ich
possible mineral discovery holds out have secured
HOMESTEAD rights in these woods and who march into
TO yn and again to their lonely cabins with packs
and axes on their backs Ii is secret that the main
object In these settlements 10 not much to clear up
Governmt nt quickly and at the least Poss BILE trouble
and then Ia the end sell out at a good figure.
| The Minnesota Iron Company Is not alone IN It's
enterprise here Several other companies have
| secured mining property northeast OF u.s. ana nave
| begun this sprng to develop their holdings Inc
surface appearances about these seem to Indicate that
they will prove valuable as any mines along the
range. Several anal Uses OF the ore show that IL
contains 90 per cent OF metallic iron, while IN phos-
phorus it comes within the Bessemer limit
Several tow sprin ging up about these mines
and speculation is rite over the sale OF town lots
There l. no trouble at present about selecting lot on
the paper plan Of any particular town, but more
difficulty exists IN discovering where they actually
lie The expectation however, Is that before summer
ends the railroad will connect with these towns
which are uamed Spalding, Florence and Ely, and
that the mining operations there will prove stimulus
TO trade and settlement
OTRTOUS GEOGRA PHICIL ERROR